Life's Solution: Inevitable Humans in a Lonely Universe

di Simon Conway Morris (Autore)

Cambridge University Press, 2004

The assassin's bullet misses, the Archduke's carriage moves forward, and a catastrophic war is avoided. So too with the history of life. Re-run the tape of life, as Stephen J. Gould claimed, and the outcome must be entirely different: an alien world, without humans and maybe not even intelligence. The history of life is littered with accidents: any twist or turn may lead to a completely different world. Now this view is being challenged. Simon Conway Morris explores the evidence demonstrating life's almost eerie ability to navigate to a single solution, repeatedly. Eyes, brains, tools, even culture: all are very much on the cards. So if these are all evolutionary inevitabilities, where are our counterparts across the galaxy? The tape of life can only run on a suitable planet, and it seems that such Earth-like planets may be much rarer than hoped. Inevitable humans, yes, but in a lonely Universe.

• Autore: Simon Conway Morris
• Editore: Cambridge University Press
• Anno: 2004
• Rilegatura: Paperback / softback
• Pagine: 488 p.
• Dimensioni: 226 x 150 mm
• Peso: 680 gr.
• EAN: 9780521603256

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